A man is behind bars after he tried to rob the offering plate of a local church during Sunday services.
Demetrius Presley, 48, is charged with strong-arm robbery, a felony.
Presley allegedly walked into Canaan Baptist Church on Short Main Street on Sunday and caused a disturbance during worship services before taking a handful of money from an offering plate, Police Chief Joseph Daughtry told The Dispatch.
A retired police officer, who is a deacon at the church, detained Presley at the back door of the church, then he and another deacon took Presley outside, where they held him in the parking lot until police arrived, Daughtry said.
“Unfortunately, we have a lot of people around here who have mental issues, but then we also have some who don’t have mental issues and act like they have mental issues,” Daughtry said. “They’re creating disturbances. … I commend the church for what they did.”
Daughtry said his officers are more heavily patrolling areas near churches, and he has also spoken with other local church leaders who have expressed concerns about service disruptions. He said he plans to launch a program soon to train churches on dealing with “critical incidents” such as Sunday’s robbery.
“It’s kind of a hard call. … People go to the church for help. The church is there to help. So a lot of (church) people have the mentality (of), ‘If you need some help, I will help you.’ Then you wind up being the prey,” he said.
Presley is being held in Lowndes County Adult Detention Center with bond set at $5,000.
Zack Plair is the managing editor for The Dispatch.
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Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 34 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
